We were in he same situation 3 years ago and we're both happy we decided to spend the extra on ours (We went for walnut)

I think the worktops were about £2.5k, the kitchen needed to be fitted first and then a couple of guys came round and made a custom fit worktop out of chipboard. 2 weeks later they came back to fit the worktop.

TBH we have neglected it and it still looks great, we should really seal it every 6 months but have only done it twice since it was fitted. I know it will easily outlast the kitchen as it can be stripped back down and re-sealed to make it look brand new.

We also considered granite, I really like granite in the right kitchen. Wood was better suited to our 1860's cottage IMO.

We went for solid oak - Ikea and still on the initial sealer after 4yrs!
Far better quality than the breakfast bar we got from Howdens and we got 3 from Ikea for the same money as the one from Howdens!

Once cut, fitted and sealed, they're almost maintenance free. We've almost ignored all that "re-oil every 6 months" stuff.

They're not up to having really hot pans put on them and they can get marked (we have a couple of rings from the bottom of red wine bottles) but marks like that can be sanded out and re-sealed if you're so minded.